A Day in the Life
by Myitt
Summary: It's not easy being a Yeerk. This is a reworking of an older story I had first posted years ago, from a Yeerk's POV, homeworld onward. Fourth chapter is up!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Animorphs, but I do own the original characters in this story. If you do read this...kindly review :)

* * *

"I'm a rollin' stone, all alone and lost 

For a life of sin I have paid the cost

When I pass by all the people say

Just another guy on the Lost Highway."

-Lost Highway, Hank Williams Sr.

* * *

**Begin Transmission 32551.02 **

**Accessing Data Files…**

**Prompt: _T-gl - - - - - - - - -_**

**Prompt Accepted…****Loading…**

**M**y name is Myitt 195.

And I am a Yeerk, if you didn't realize that from my name and designation.

I was born on my homeworld, in the pool we call Taon Yerralash, during the time of Peace between Andalite and Yeerk, the time before the Rebel Revolution.

An ironic title for the event.

I and my friends and siblings were taken from the only world we ever had known, and began our life anew as soldiers of the fledgling Yeerk Empire.

I am told that it is considered, among humans, to be a mark of conceitedness to write down one's life story. Some of you out there might expect this sort of thing from a Yeerk. Yet it is my hope that whoever reads this will understand something more about my people, and if nothing else walk away with the assurance that we are not all evil. We are not all representative of those who lead us.

And if you still think I'm conceited, I don't care.

What follows is the story of my life, the story of my brethren, and of how I came to Earth.

**Yeerk Date: Generation 685, mid-cycle**

**Earth Date: 1966**

**I**t was night again. I could sense it. Whenever night fell, the acid rain came with it. I didn't mind the rain; it was all that I knew. Kandrona rays shone less strongly, reflected by Madra, the younger sibling, the life-giver—the moon of our homeworld. I was blind, in my natural state, of course. I had never had a host body. Civil law dictated that all Yeerks fresh from grubhood are to attend training, mainly to memorize geometry and the new written script born out of the Yeerk-Andalite alliance, and at the completion of training we were taught to infest.

I and the others my age had not yet finished, and I was anxious to leave my studies behind and experience the world beyond my home. It was wishful thinking, I knew, for a Yeerk as young as I. And I knew that far off above a sky I had never seen orbited a massive Andalite fleet. The Andalites had sent emissaries to my pool almost a Generation ago, but our remote location prompted few visits from these strange creatures.

They appeared to be a benevolent race, certainly very advanced, but also extremely arrogant. The most eminent mathematician in Taon Yerralash, Nastram 452, was barely given any notice by these aliens, who claimed to care about our society. Already there was a lot of mistrust. Dissatisfaction. The feeling that we were being talked down to. Seeds that would grow and send their roots deep into the hearts and minds of many people. Apparently the Andalite Prince Seerow at their main encampment believed differently, he realized what we had already accomplished as a people, but his crew hardly seemed to realize that the limits of our bodies did not parallel limits of the mind.

I swam, blind and helpless but content amidst the comforting warmth of the Kandrona, thinking mainly about my studies. My mind kept drifting, imagining what the new Andalite theorems and models of space flight would mean to our people. I delighted in the complexity of the new equations, and at how circular they were. It seemed the universe was full of circles, and my homeworld with its circular currents a microcosm of it. Those were times of great enlightenment among my people, and amidst the discontent there was a certain amount of gratitude to the Andalites for opening up new ways to apply what we had learned, and for allowing us to experience technologies that, even in our strongest Gedd bodies, would have taken another thousand years to develop.

Some saw a deeper truth in the new technology, and it marked the end of life as we knew it.

On that day so long ago I sought my brother Reven 599. If anyone could take my mind off of mathematics and politics for a little while it was him. Taon Yerralash, as most natural Yeerk pools, was an almost perfect circle pressed into the rich dark soil of our homeworld. With a diameter of what would equate to around 120 meters, and my own body being less than 17 centimeters, it took me some time. Yerralash was a middle-sized pool, with a population of approximately 4,000. My people are a genderless species, yet we become accustomed to one gender or another as we receive hosts. At the time we knew of such things but did not mentally identify with any one gender, and never had. However it is by force of habit that I refer to my siblings as "brother" and "sister" here.

I eventually found my brother through scent and sonar, loitering around one of the deep spots and conversing with, of all people, our sister Larin 141. She was quite the opposite of Reven, bold and confident, and she rarely cared for anyone but herself. Andalite bashing was her new favorite hobby. We spoke in Yeerkish, naturally—a language that is a complex series of ultrasonic squeaks in its most primal form--but the text will be in English for human convenience. If nothing else we Yeerks have extraordinary memory. I remember it as clearly as if I was there now, in a simpler time, with nothing but the sweetness of the homeworld in my skin and my siblings around, when my biggest worry was passing my training.

All around us, in the utter blackness, dozens of my people darted about their business. We were not bothered.

_Reven!_ I said. _Greetings, I am glad I found you. I've had a lot on my mind lately, it's no good to keep it all to myself._

_And you expect me to entertain your jargon again, Myitt?_ He laughed, a pleasant series of clicks. _I don't think so._

_Your loss,_ khaf-_brain,_ I muttered good-naturedly. _And I don't think about training _all_ the time. _

_You don't give yourself enough credit, little one_, said Larin. _Of course, I've been preparing constantly myself, old Nastram isn't easy on slacker grublings when the end of the cycle comes around._

_No, I suppose he isn't,_ I admitted. _Speaking of Nastram, do you think he's been granted audience with the Andalite scientists? You heard how excited he was about the similarities between loop theory and Andalite Harmonics. _

_Here we go again,_ Reven sighed.

_I actually haven't bumped into him all day, not since yesterday's lesson,_ said Larin. _It isn't like him to disappear, especially not this close to our infestation. _

_Maybe he's in Hett Simplat, it rained enough last night, _said Reven. _The Andalites are more numerous there._

_Perhaps, _I said. _You don't suppose he got as far as Culat Hesh? Straight to Seerow himself? I would expect that from old Nastram. Tenacity._

_The canals did not flood straight through to the third sector, otherwise we would have heard from Hesh during this morning's traffic, _said Reven. _I have a feeling something has happened to him._

_What could possibly happen? Nastram's far too quick for a _Vanarx, said Larin. She shivered, sending off erratic electrical impulses.

_Don't speak of them at night, _I said. _I'm sure the old timer is fine._

A faint rumbling suddenly began, shaking the foundation of the pool.

_What is that? It feels like a massive thunderclap, _said Reven.

_That's no thunderclap, _I said, growing uneasy as the rumbling became stronger. _Something is landing here. A ship, something large. _

Around us our brother Yeerks were noticing the same thing we had. I heard someone I didn't recognize shouting angrily to someone else about an unscheduled landing as they darted past, his ultrasonic sentence hitting us at the same time.

The rumbling quieted, and there was a long stretch of silence. Nothing but the sound of the water swirling.

I swam downwards and pointed my palps up towards the surface, firing sonar. The familiar sense of the water surface was immediately apparent, but something felt very wrong.

_Kandrona, _whispered Larin. _Do you feel that? It's very weak. What's happening?_

_I don't know, _I said. _I think something has—_

There was a brain-aching thud and the grinding of something metal against the grit of soil. A different-toned rumbling began.

_Has…_, I continued, stunned, and admittedly afraid. _It feels like the surface of the pool has been covered with something._

_What? Why? Is it the Andalites? _said Reven, and I "saw" him in broken, line-like etches turn upwards.

Before I could answer there was a deep rumble that spread like a large wave through the floor of the pool, and there was an immediate sensation of motion. The next thing that happened was the most incredible—we, not just myself and Reven and Larin, the entirety of our home pool was elevated upward dramatically. It felt like…in retrospect, what I would imagine being sucked up through a giant straw might feel like. It wasn't too far from the truth.

_What is happening! _shouted Larin from somewhere behind me. I couldn't answer. I heard nothing but rumbling until I felt a gentle downward gradient, and the bizarre sensation of air unexpectedly brushing past my palps. Whatever this thing was it was circular in shape, and confining.

I tumbled and fell into an open space. A pool! There was a sudden jolt as Kandrona began flooding my body once more.

I stretched my musculocytes and swam cautiously out into this new environment. I was firing sonar right at something flat and dull. It smelled…well, it didn't smell like much at all. I swam up to it, away from the deposition of the rest of my pool from the strange circle-tube, and felt around.

_Metal, _I muttered. _What kind of pool is this?_

_Nothing like we're used to, _said a voice. It was Reven, coming up from farther along the rim of this metal boundary.

There was an electronic chirr and suddenly an electronic message began broadcasting to the entire pool.

_**Do not be alarmed. You are safe, and aboard Number Three Ship of the Yeerk Rebellion. We have cast off the bonds of our planet and rebelled against the Andalite scum that oppress us. In your new home you shall find peace and prosperity as we, under the ordinance of the great and wise Council of Thirteen take our rightful place as travelers of the stars. **_


	2. Chapter 2

**W**e discovered two things very quickly.

The first was that it was becoming very crowded. The titanium alloy pool that was now our home was, I later learned, one of dozens of large vats constructed by Gedd bodies aboard one of two enormous Andalite transport ships. In all, there were now more than 250,000 Yeerks aboard seven fighters and two transports. Although none of us felt it at the time, we were kept updated with information that revealed we were pool-hopping, taking off and landing at several Yeerk pools far from the surprised Andalites.

The pool I and my siblings had been deposited in seemed enormous: a bland stretch of familiar liquid that I could not even detect the far end of. Its richness was gone, replaced by an oily metallic smell. Not long after we had first arrived, the 4,000 some-odd Yeerks in this vast stretch were accompanied by 10,000 more. We were suddenly in a metropolis, as big as Sulp Niar, the enormous natural pool that was among the closest to the Andalite-Yeerk Peace and Cooperation Center. It was overwhelming, even to one so used to the constant roil of swimming Yeerks. Most of the newcomers were just as confused and frightened, despite the electronic message—a computer interface broadcasting directly into the pool itself—and its efforts to calm us.

We, unlike many people closer to the base, had not been aware of the impending uprising. There had been rumors, outbursts of vehement discontent, but if anyone in Taon Yerralash had been a part of the army of Gedds that killed the Andalite guards and stole their ships I had not been aware. Perhaps it was the great distance—it would take a strong Yeerk a sixteenth of a cycle, a considerable amount of time and effort, to swim the long distance through the traverse canals to any of the pools near the base. Even in a Gedd body or an Andalite transport it would take a long time, and the quickest method, the transport, would require Andalite clearance. Communication is excellent between Yeerks within close proximity, but even a plan of such grand scale faces a challenge in reaching distant palps.

Perhaps myself and the majority of the people I knew best were considered too young—we were unable to infest properly, and we would hardly be worth the security risk of alerting us to a major rebellion. There was no telling who we might end up inadvertently talking to. We were not much more than children, in the human sense. Yet we were so proud, so bold. We were rash.

For whatever reason, we were thrust unexpectedly into this new life, aboard technology we had heard about but had never really been exposed to. It was as exciting as it was terrifying.

The second thing that became apparent to us all was that the computer message had lied to us. It was very clear that we were no longer at peace.

_So I run into him, yes? And he turns, and it isn't as though I could hide, and he says to me, 'Rykker 279, why weren't you at lesson today?' And I say to him, 'I'm sorry, sir, but it was awful of me…I was planning on going to lesson, but the _ota_ trees had just reached their peak over the lagoon and I simply could not pass up the opportunity to visit them.'_

Our brother Rykker had found us amidst the chaos, and was apparently unperturbed by it.

_So he goes on about me skipping lesson to go on some wild swim in the _redin, _and I deny it of course, and he starts to say something about smelling alcohol when there's all this commotion at the pool's edge. I, clearly not intoxicated, tell him straight away that there is a Gedd whose head is being held partially submerged. Then we notice someone swimming right at us, who ignores me completely and goes straight for Nastram, it smelled like someone from maybe Sulp Niar, and the next thing I know this new guy is gone and Nastram swims off without so much as a farewell. _

_He gave you no explanation? _said Larin.

_No, nothing. I thought it was a little odd, _said Rykker in a matter-of-fact tone.

_To say the least, _I said. _I wish we had more information. How are we supposed to finish training without our teachers? At least then we wouldn't be stuck here, relying on some cryptic message and a few wild reports of a battle. _

There was a tremor and the creak of metal, sending strong waves through the artificial pool's circular current. The pool liquid began to list to one side, sending us in the same direction until inertial dampeners kicked in and the water leveled out.

_Great, we've gone from one traumatic experience to another, _said Reven as he tried to swim against the sudden tilt of gravity.

_I don't suppose the Andalites exactly appreciate this whole "rebellion", _I said, once the pool had settled. _They gave us the knowledge of their technology, and we thanked them graciously, then crushed them when they least expected it and took off. _

_You cannot seriously be sympathizing with those smug, grass-eating freaks?_ Larin demanded.

_Of course not, _I replied. _My point is simply that we may have caught them off guard, but Andalites are not dense. They may not realize what has happened on the ground, but of all the Andalites in orbit at least one of them has probably noticed the nine Andalite ships fleeing our planet without clearance. _

As if in confirmation, another jolt rocked the pool. Then another. Each more violent. They were no longer firing warning shots.

And then…

And then, firing ceased. There was a gentle, tingling sensation of motion, and then silence.

_Have we died? _said Rykker.

_No, we haven't died, _I snapped.

_Then what was that? _

_I…I don't know._

* * *

It seemed like a very long time before we got our answer.

We Yeerks do not sleep, at least not in the same way humans sleep. Part of our brain is constantly functioning, without tiring, even if we are in a sleeping host, and in our natural state we do not become tired. Physical exhaustion can affect us, but we do not crave sleep to rejuvenate ourselves. It is perhaps because of this that the passage of great periods of time does not affect us in the same way it does to many other creatures. We mark the passage of time, but we lack anything as sophisticated as the Andalites' remarkable internal clock. On the homeworld we knew the rising and setting of our sun and moon, and if we take hosts we become invested in our feeding schedule every three days—the equivalent to approximately one passage of the Kandrona on our homeworld. Our year, a Generation, is marked by three cycles. But to Yeerks who know only the Yeerk pool life is lived in almost constant activity, with schedules that run around the clock, constant and untiring.

However, when there was nothing to do but wait and talk, and hope that we were not being boarded by furious Andalite warriors, we felt it. We waited anxiously for any news, wondering if anyone would bother to update the thousands of us who lacked hosts. We wondered if anyone could.

After an eternity, a message was broadcast. It was electronic and flat-sounding, but I could guess who it was.

_**My fellow Yeerks. We have jumped into Zero-Space. Our homeworld is compromised, our brothers there compromised. The homeworld is presumed to be under complete Andalite control, until the day we return with hosts sufficient to rival their own bodies. The Andalites will come in great numbers, but we shall defeat them. This is the beginning of a great and glorious era for the Yeerk race. The entire galaxy can be ours.**_

_**All individuals who have not yet begun or completed training must report their position to the pool computers immediately. To do so, insert your palps into any two contiguous interface outlets. **_

The message cut out abruptly.

_Pool…computers? _said Rykker.

_I suppose we'll never be able to go home again, _said Reven glumly.

_I wonder who was left behind? _I said. _Anyone we knew._

_Let them rot there, _said Larin.

I turned to her, surprised.

_Don't you understand? _she continued. _This is far better than anything the homeworld could have offered. This is what the Andalites, for all their help, have been really denying us. Conquest, think of it, we could be…overlords of the entire galaxy._

Her voice was soft, but it was exultant.

Reven burst out laughing. _Listen to you, Larin, you sound like a Councilor. Can you imagine us, any of us, subduing the minds of sentient aliens against their will? Not stupid, slow Gedds but someone like ourselves?_

Yeerks do not have eyes. We cannot express our anger in the subtle facial expressions like humans can. Our emotions run through our entire body. I sensed then a sort of horrible, defiant anger in Larin then that I hadn't felt from her before.

_Go on thinking that all you want, Reven, _Larin sneered. _But don't come to me when it occurs to you how much we've been held back all this time. I think I realize, finally realize, what else the Andalites haven't been telling us while they coddled us and treated us like dust. Of course, we can infest more than just Gedds. We can infest Andalites themselves if we wanted to. You simply haven't seen that potential yet. That's all right. _Her voice was tense with anger. _But I hope for your own good you change your mind. Because you're starting to sound like an Andalite-lover, little brother. _

She swam off, propelling a good distance away before turning towards one of the computer interfaces.

* * *

AN: Please review if you've read this far, I need feedback, and how am I going to continue if I don't know who's reading it, if they hate it or not? innocent look Pleeease?

Anifan1: Thanks for reviewing :) See, I told you I would get around to rewriting this eventually!

Tiko: Thanks, I'm glad you think it's going okay...the story will probably go at least up to the beginning of 54, but whether or not the Animorphs themselves actually appear is another matter.


	3. Chapter 3

_I can't understand her,_ Reven fumed.

We swam over to the nearest three outlets. Rykker felt around the edges tentatively.

_Don't feel so badly about it, Reven, _I said. _Perhaps she will change her mind once we finish training. In the meantime if she wants to be antisocial that's her choice. _

_I think she's just been shaken up by this whole move, _said Rykker. _She is not herself._

_How can she say such things? _said Reven. _We are Yeerks, not monsters. _

_I don't know, _said Rykker. _What she said makes me nervous. Infest Andalites? Why would any decent Yeerk want to infest anything but a Gedd? It isn't natural._

_Well, _I said hesitantly.

_What? _Reven snapped irritably.

_Nastram and the others…they have never said that Gedds are the only creatures a Yeerk may infest, _I continued._ In the past, ancient Yeerks would infest different creatures, long since extinct. Any creature with ear canals and the brain capacity to accommodate our bodies should be able to be infested._

_Yes, but Myitt, you cannot be saying this would be right? _said Reven.

Rykker had turned from us, tentatively exploring the computer interface.

_I don't know, Reven. Larin should not have been so angry about it, but she is telling the truth. _

_So, you think that I'm some Andalite-lover as well, then? _Reven said quietly.

_Of course not, _I sighed, feeling oxygen rush through my skin. _Reven, I don't know what to think anymore, but you are my brother, and you are a good person. You are loyal. Don't let what Larin said bother you._

Rykker suddenly jolted away from the wall, emitting a terrified cry.

_What? Rykker! What is it? _I cried. I fired sonar and analyzed it impatiently, worriedly.

_It is…I do not understand, _said Rykker, sounding desperately confused.

_Rykker, _I said tersely. _You must have inserted your palps into the computer. Did it hurt you? Rykker, answer me!_

_It…no…it…I, _said Rykker. _There were things in my mind. _

His last sentence did not register.

_What, Rykker, that does not make sense, _said Reven, turning to feel along the wall. I turned to the metal surface and found two small grooves, like tunnels. I cautiously inserted my palps into them, first one, then the other.

At first nothing happened.

And after a few seconds, a whirring noise.

A cold sensation came over me. Rykker had not exaggerated. Things…flickers of something like the richest sonar I could imagine flashed through my mind. I did not understand. It was overwhelming! Something was scrolling steadily through my mind like a wave. I felt disoriented.

Slowly, slowly I realized that I recognized what my mind was receiving. It was the Yeerkish script! I recognized the letters the Andalites had given us. It was a list of information, nothing more, but unlike the fragmentary mind-to-mind images sent to us by our teachers it was so clear, so detailed. It was the first time I had ever experienced a computer monitor, and although it was not yet as detailed as sight itself, it was the closest I had ever come to it. I tried to focus on the message that was scrolling, repeatedly, through my mind. It commanded the user to direct its thoughts into the interface, giving name, designation and home pool. I did so, awaited confirmation that it had received my information, and withdrew my palps from the computer. Blackness, nothing in my brain but my own thoughts.

I felt strange. Empty.

_Are you alright now, Rykker? _I asked, concerned.

_Yes, _he whispered. _I had no idea. No one ever told me…what incredible technology we have taken along with us! _

_Maybe you would have had some idea if you had come to lesson more often, _Reven snickered, coming around to join us again, but even he sounded dazed.

_All we have to do now is wait for our summons, _I said, hoping I sounded more confident about it than I felt.

* * *

A long stretch of time passed. None of us were called, and Larin had still not returned. Myself and my two brothers were forced away from the edge of the wall by a small group of people from Hett Simplat who needed to report to the computers, so we swam out into the open again. It was still incredible how many Yeerks surrounded us, nearly darting into us at every moment.

We swam, telling jokes that were met with nervous laughter. It was clear that all of our minds were thinking ahead.

Then, Reven was called to an "infestation area".

_Wish me luck, _he said anxiously as he swam off toward the designated area.

_You'll be fine, Reven, _I said, watching him depart in etches of sonar.

_Good luck, Reven, _said Rykker. He turned to me. _Can't be long now, I suppose._

I was about to answer when someone bumped into me, hard.

_Hey, mark where you swim, brainless, _I cried. My side ached.

_Oh, excuse me, I was meaning to run into someone I didn't know, _the stranger remarked slyly. He smelled like…

_Corliss! _I said. _I was wondering where you were!_

_Ahahah, well, Myitt…I've been around, _said Corliss 382, a sibling of whom I was also very fond. _Mostly spending time rifling through some of the computer files. I didn't mean to spend that much time in there, honest! Rykker, that is you isn't it? Surely you two have noticed the shipboard computers, aren't they incredible?_

_Indeed, _said Rykker, still sounding a little uneasy about them.

_Amazing times, you two, amazing times are ahead. I wish I could stay and talk, but I've been summoned for training infestation. You haven't been, yet, have you?_

_No, _we chorused.

_Well. Best of luck to you both, _he said. _I'd better go, or I'll be last in line! _

_Fare well, Corliss, _I said. He swam off in a hurry, and I turned back to Rykker.

_I was beginning to think he had been left behind, _I said. _It's good that he's here with us._

_Yes, I'm glad too, _said Rykker. _Myitt, _he said suddenly, _do you think it's true, what they've warned us about in lesson? That taking a host can drive people mad, from sheer sensory overload?_

I was surprised Rykker had been to enough lessons to retain this, but I replied, _I think it can happen, but it is very rare. _At his stricken silence I laughed and reassured him. _Don't worry, Rykker, we'll both be fine. Think of it as an adventure. And the benefits! Nastram has said that taking a host changes one's entire life, endowing incredible power and sensory ability. It is something we should not be so frightened about. We should be thrilled! _I felt like I was saying this to comfort myself as much as him.

_Why am I still afraid? _he said tremulously, after a few moments.

A string of summons rang out electronically. Rykker was called.

_Oh, no, _he said miserably, swimming off.

My name was called!

I swam after him. _We'll be fine, _I insisted, coming up beside him.

_Yes. Fine, _he said flatly.

I swam towards the infestation area, queuing near Rykker in the same line. I was third in line, he was second. Before we began, one of our teachers—not Nastram, but an elder Yeerk named Janath 429, briefed us on how long we would have.

_Line up, one at a time, line up! Now. You have fifteen minutes to enter the Gedd host, take it, and return to the pool. Failure to do so in the allotted time will result in disciplinary action. You may begin. _

Janath swam out of the way to observe through sonar.

A long fifteen minutes passed. There was a splash as the first in line fell back into the pool.

_You'll be fine, Rykker, _I said.

Rykker groaned. He swam up to the Gedd and I watched him enter. The Gedd's head lifted out of the pool surface. These fifteen minutes were even more intolerable than the last. I waited impatiently for Rykker to return, and for my turn.

At last I felt the concussion of waves and I knew that Rykker had reentered the pool. There was no time to speak with him, however, but surely if anything had gone wrong…

No time. I rushed forward, firing sonar at the side of the creature's head, shoved back under the surface of the pool. I easily found the ear opening. I remembered what I had been taught and began squeezing into the ear canal, but I found that an overwhelming, unspoken instinct drove me forward at the same time. I slithered further into the warm darkness, secreting my numbing chemicals to dilate the canal and prevent this Gedd from feeling any pain from my entrance. I pushed onward, pushing aside membranous tissue and feeling my tail leave the Kandrona-laden safety of the pool. I was entirely inside the host's skull when I felt contact with the brain. It was alive! A living surface of electricity. It was shocking to feel, yet at the same time it was completely, inexplicably natural. I flattened myself as thin as I could manage and sank myself down, in between the cranial membranes and the living brain itself. I felt a new sensation—I could hear again! But they were strange sounds, alien. I connected to the synapses, feeling neurons fire into my own nerve cells. Eerie pictures flashed through my mind, images like what I had seen in the computer—but they were pictures! I reeled, digging through the host's memory, its language hitting me wildly from three different parts that I could touch. Slowly I understood that the images were scenes from the Gedd's life. Much of its life had been spent under Yeerk control, but it retained crystal clear pictures nonetheless, of course. It was beyond comprehension, the amount of information that was flooding my brain.

I immediately became aware of a nagging, urgent sensation. I realized the host was suffocating, its head still partially submerged. I drew the creature's head up out of the water and took a few coughing breaths. Even breathing was strange in this body! The front of my new face felt uncomfortable, and I clamped down on the simple frontal lobe. I realized that the host's eyes were blurred with water, stinging. I blinked and staggered back, barely realizing I was caught by stronger Gedd hands. I was staring out through the Gedd's eyes. It was…it was indescribably beautiful. I was staring at the shining metal tile floor. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever experienced. I stared at it, wondering, using the Gedd's mind to help me understand what I was receiving, help me accept it. I lifted my head and gazed to the side, saw Gedds standing, watching something I could not understand. Computer screen, yes, it was not the same as the floor. Something about it made my eyes pang with pain and pleasure. What? I gaped, taking in the beauty of what I was seeing, hardly daring to believe it. Color. So much of it! So varied, so shocking. Shapes and movement of other creatures, of technology. So much!

I was pushed back towards the pool and leaned heavily against it, gripping the rim with my three-fingered hands. Oh, what structures, these hands! I was staring straight down at the grey, viscous liquid, at the circular metal structure that had seemed so vast to me. The bored Gedd behind me gestured to the pool, clicking in the simple Gedd language. Yes, I must return now. I stared down at the pool, taking in the smell of it with a strange sense of smell, hearing it slosh, but staring at it. Watching the light shine on its waves from the ship's ceiling.

I knew I would have to give up this world of beauty, this world that had me awestruck, and every fiber of my mind protested.

A voice moaned. What? I listened for the sound, I sniffed. Had I made a sound with the Gedd mouth?

No, it was in my head. It was the host!

_Did you speak, Gedd? _I said in Yeerkish, mind-to-mind.

It did not answer, but I could see its emotions rise up, bubbling around me. Such a strange experience!

The host was exhausted. It was resigned. It felt as though it wanted to die.

Why?

My time was up. I had to return without a clear answer. But I thought I knew.

As I leaned over the pool and began to disengage, savoring the last view of the far wall, relishing the beauty of the blank white metal, I pondered this upwelling of emotion curiously. I was blind again, and I fell into the warm pool almost gratefully. I swam, still unsure of what I had just experienced, away from the progressing lines of young Yeerks.

I had completed training.

It had been…marvelous, a miracle.

Why was I not overjoyed?

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reviewing, everyone, I really appreciate it :) Please keep it up!

Quillian: I hope it isn't too close to what we've seen already with Esplin...but, well...let me just say these Yeerks are much different than Esplin, in the end!

Anifan1: Thanks :) Yeah...Larin is certainly the note of discord in the group.

AllOrNone: Thanks for reviewing!

Genesis Dragon: The only firsthand clues we have areofcoursefrom the Hork-Bajir Chronicles...little bits from other books, too, but I always wished more had been said. Especially from Yeerks' POV. Thanks for the review!

AwakenedOddity: Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

**I** swam back across the pool, lost in thought. Its familiarity was no comfort. My mind was still swimming somewhere back with the Gedd whose very body I had just taken control of.

Taken control.

I shuddered. This was what we would have to do in order to see again? To see and exist outside of the pool?

The Gedd had not been a witless, blank receptacle. Of course it wasn't. But it had felt despair at my presence. Why? Why had it felt this way? It was all that the creature had known its entire life, its people had evolved in near mutuality with my own. Why should it feel sorrow at such an existence?

I felt angry. Angry at the Gedd for not accepting what it must accept. Angry at my brother Yeerks for telling us it was our right to control them. Angry at myself for questioning that right.

_So, Myitt. How do you feel?_

I turned, jarred out of my thoughts. It was Larin.

_Well? _she said, when I gave no answer.

_Fine, _I muttered.

There was a moment of silence.

_Fine? That's all you can say?_

I hesitated. Larin had never been an empathic person, but surely there would be no reason not to tell her how I truly felt?

_Well, _Larin continued, musing almost to herself. _I think I would give anything to have a host. What power! I never imagined it would be so wonderful. Don't you agree?_

_It was wonderful, _I said, sounding as though there hadn't been anything wonderful at all about it.

_Come, cheer up, we're adults now. We should be celebrating, not moping about. Think on it, Myitt, soon we could have hosts of our own! Wouldn't that be exciting? Think about all the equations you could dream up with six fingers!_

_It would be nice, _I said, sounding more sure of it. _And we would be able to see._

_That's the spirit, _she said happily. _Come on, let's find the others._

Why was she so eager? A real change from the last time I had spoken to her. Had infestation really affected her mood that much?

_I thought you didn't want to associate yourself with alleged Andalite-lovers, _I told her as we swam.

There was silence again.

_I didn't mean that, _said Larin. _I was just angry, that's all. _

I waited.

_I'm sorry, _she said.

_I don't think I'm the one you should be apologizing to._

_Oh, Reven will be fine, Myitt. Besides, I'm sure he will have changed his mind about infestation now that he's done it. _

I decided to try and test her opinion. _I still think he feels insulted. Although I have to admit you're right Larin, this is what we were meant to do, and nothing can change that._

She stopped swimming and turned to me. _So, can I assume then that you feel that Reven's behavior amounts to more than his nerves speaking for him? _She lowered her voice to a whisper. _I think he's beginning to sound like he's against us. _

This surprised me very much. _Against _us_, as in our people? Larin, don't be ridiculous, we have the right to choose if we want to take hosts, whether it's within our ability to do so or not. _

_Well some of us, and it's far more than just myself, are beginning to think it isn't natural to feel that way, that we should want to take other bodies now that we have the capability to find them. They're saying as many of us as possible should be granted hosts. There's even talk of trying to find bodies that would serve adequately in battle. After all, we are at war._

War. It hadn't really sunk in yet. Yes, we were at war, and we would have to fight.

I thought again about the poor Gedd whose mind I had so easily crushed beneath my control, almost without thinking. Its simple body would be excellent for tasks of labor, but it was hardly a warrior's body, even if it was armed with an Andalite weapon. It was by sheer surprise that the organized attack on the homeworld had succeeded.

Perhaps we would find creatures who might be willing to serve us, and fight for us? The idea lifted my mood considerably. I told myself it was possible, it had to be possible.

_I don't think Reven is against anyone, Larin. If we are meant to spread throughout the galaxy and take new hosts, he will have to accept it. At least until this war is over._

I had to accept it, as well. Yet I did not tell her that I still agreed with Reven. Something, some nagging feeling, told me not to.

* * *

We eventually found Reven and Corliss. Reven claimed his infestation had been a very good thing. 

_I thought you might have a different opinion about it, Reven. _Larin was busily rubbing it in. _Do you understand now? The Yeerk race finally has the ability to achieve its fullest potential. Finally we are as free as the Andalites! _

_And soon we will undoubtedly be more powerful, _said Corliss. _Imagine all the technology we could come across. I thought the Andalite technology we have here was incredible enough…soon we might have weapons of our own. Ships of our own, Yeerk spaceships!_

_It truly is exciting, _said Reven abruptly. _Ah…Myitt, would you mind coming with me to find Rykker? I haven't spoken to him yet._

_Of course, _I said. We bade farewell to Larin and Corliss and swam off to find our softspoken sibling.

For a few moments there was an awkward silence between Reven and I.

_Myitt, _said Reven. _Promise me you won't tell the others if I confide something to you?_

_Naturally, Reven, _I said. I saw this coming.

Reven sighed. _Listen. I enjoyed infestation, maybe more than I want to admit. But I still don't feel right about it, I don't feel right about it at all. Did you search the host's memories? Mine were…awful. Horrifying. These training Gedds…they aren't happy with our control. They and many other Gedds. Anyone who takes the time to search their minds can see that. The creatures are simply too feeble to do anything but suffer in the back of their minds. They bear such slim sentience that they lack the power to fight, and so they accept Yeerk control as a grim but all-encompassing part of their lives. They don't know any better. Myitt, it was…worse than I had feared. How can we take their sight, their bodies, all their senses when they are too dim to do anything but despair?_

We had stopped swimming. The desperation in his voice, the memories of my own experience…I sympathized with him more than I knew how to express.

_I feel the same way, _I said simply. _But Larin has been speaking to others, and she says there will be no choice but to take a host if we are assigned one. It is because of the war. Reven, you must believe that I feel what you feel…but I don't think we'll have a choice, if the Council deems any of us useful enough to gain a host body. _

_I am glad you agree. I knew you would, _he said softly. _But if what Larin says is true I don't care, I won't take a host if I am called. What happened to free will among our people?_

I laughed bitterly. _That, my brother, was lost when we left the homeworld._

* * *

_He was so frightened, Myitt, _said Rykker. _It made me feel terrible. I still feel sick because of it. _

Reven and I had found Rykker, palps downcast, idly playing with some pebbles on the warm metal floor of the pool.

_I told Myitt, I don't care, I'm not taking a host if I'm told to, _said Reven furiously.

_Not even to see? _said Rykker. _Oh, to see again…I think I could almost handle controlling a host to be that way, even just to have control of the sight organs. _I felt him sigh. _It isn't like any of the elders will think I'm useful, anyway. _

_Nonsense, Rykker, there are a lot of things you're good at, _I said._ The Council of Thirteen will realize that. Besides, what about the things we haven't learned yet? They look for certain traits in people and send them to a host to learn skills, you know, what about mechanics? I bet you would be really good at handling a ship's Shredder cannon. _

I fell silent at the thought of Rykker destroying enemies in battle.

_You're making him feel just wonderful, Myitt, _said Reven jokingly.

_Well, I think I might be good at something like that, _Rykker mused._ 'Rykker 279, report to weapons station'…I like the sound of that._

_Dreams of grandeur, yes Rykker? Getting carried away? _I laughed. It was good to see him cheering up a little, and it made me feel better too.

_Even something safe, like janitorial duties, that would be fine by me. _

_I don't think I would call those safe, exactly, _Reven intoned.

_What if the hosts we take could be persuaded to allow us to inhabit them? _I said._ What if we could give them partial control, or at least allow them some freedom if they asked it of us? _

_I've heard others, in passing, mentioning similar things, _said Reven_. I've been…sort of eavesdropping whenever I can to see what the consensus is among people our age. _

_So tell me,_ I said slyly. _Are we so strange to be believing that our own Gedds are unhappy with their great Yeerk dominators?_

_Why no, my dear Myitt, as a matter of fact there are a lot of us who feel the same way as the three of us. I don't think Larin is capable nor willing to hide such dissent from us, so she's probably going to stick to her 'overlords of the galaxy' ideal. I wonder about Corliss, though. I hope he hasn't really fallen in with the way Larin thinks. _

_And if she's right, there are just as many of us who think the same way she does, _I said.

_Well. Here's hoping there are enough of us to regain some sense of decency among our people, _said Reven.

_I hope you're right, _Rykker muttered. _Both of you. Maybe there is a better way._

Youthful optimism made us blinder than ever. It would take the rest of Rykker's life before we could really see again.

* * *

A/N: Thanks to everyone for reviewing :) If you're new to the story please send along comments, criticisms and whatnot. 

Anifan: Thankee as usual :)

Tiko: Aw thanks!

Quillian: Exactly. More of the same in this chapter, I'm afraid, but only because it's such an important event in their lives. It molds their morals.

AllOrNone: grin And you wouldn't like her if she was caught up in the Empire? I can't tell you, anyway (because I'm evil ;))

Baranth: I wondered where you had gone! Myitt didn't know any of you guys when she was a youngster. I can't promise anything because I don't know if I'm going to give allies anythingat all,and if that,a brief mention or a cameo...this story is focusing on the Yeerks themselves.


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